A Food-Lover's Walk Down Rue Montorgueil in Paris

Following Paule and her great little shopping cart down rue Montorgueil.

Rue Montorgueil is near the center of Paris, in the 2nd arrondissement, and just a few blocks away from Les Halles — the former wholesale food market for all of Paris. Les Halles' commercial market was moved to the suburbs many years ago, but food shops like those lining rue Montorgueil have replaced it for the local cooks. And what great shops they are!

I had coffee here with David Lebovitz and then returned the next day for a market walk with Paule Caillat. She took me through some of her favorite shops, from the seafood purveyor to the cheese shop. Here's a little look at each place, with some notes on each (see captions above). It's a wonderful street for food shopping, and there are some acclaimed restaurants here as well.

Parisian-knowledgeable folks will note the sad absence of one memorable place: La Maison Stohrer! This pastry shop opened in 1730 and therefore claims the honor of the oldest still-existing pâtisserie in Paris. There was some construction and cleaning going on there that day, so I wasn't able to take photos, sadly.